Love is a Battlefield
by Ranmano1fan
Summary: Ash and Co. arrive in a town that is celebrating Valentine's Day and the town's founding with a pokemon tournament. But when it isn't quite what they expected, how will he and Misty handle it. And if they win would it change anything between them? AshxMisty pairing. Did my best to keep it as in character as I could.


**Love is a Battlefield**

By: Ranmano1fan

* * *

Ash, Misty and Brock, along with Pikachu and Togepi, found themselves in a busy little town while traveling their way through the Johto region. They looked at their surroundings, confused by the red, white and pink streamers that were hung from tree to tree that lined the streets.

"What's going on?" wondered Ash.

Brock opened up his guidebook and read aloud, "Looks like we've stumbled onto this town's Valentine's Day festival. It seems to be very popular because this town was founded by a couple on this day a long time ago."

"I guess we've been traveling so much we forgot what day it was," said Misty, looking at a store window display of heart-shaped boxes of chocolate and she blushed at the thought of someone special giving her one of those boxes.

The residents seemed to be more cheerful than was necessary, as if there was a loving aura that was blanketing the town. The group was only passing through and they weren't really planning on stopping for long, only to get a few things before heading off again. They stopped at the local Pokèmon Center and were there for only a few minutes when a poster announcing a local tournament had caught the boy's eye.

"Hey look! They're having a Pokèmon tournament!" shouted Ash.

Filled with excitement at the thought of battling, the youngster could wait a second longer.

"Come on guys, let's go!" he said and not waiting for a response ran out the doors.

"Ash, wait up!" called Misty as she, with Togepi in her arms, ran after him.

Brock on the other hand stood and stared at the poster some more. That was when he noticed something Ash must've overlooked.

"Hmmm," he said with his chin between his forefinger and thumb, "This might turn out interesting."

Leaving the Center, the young man looked left and right for his companions, and though he did not see them he did see instead couples of varying ages walking up and down the street, taking in the sights before them. Giving a quick thought of how nice it would be to have girl's hand to hold, Brock started off in the direction he believed his friends went, the opposite direction they took to arrive at the Center. Soon enough he caught up to his friends, with Ash standing anxiously in the short line to sign up and Misty off to the side, rolling her eyes at the way he was acting.

As soon as the older boy got to her side he said, "Misty, I've got something you need to hear."

When it was finally his turn, the young man could hardly contain himself anymore.

He walked up to the table and said, "My name is Ash and I want to enter the tournament."

The man wrote down his name and asked, "And who is your partner?"

Pikachu jumped onto his trainer's shoulders and replied "Pikachu!"

"Yeah, Pikachu's my partner," agreed Ash.

The man gave them a confused look, "You can't have a Pokèmon as your partner."

"But isn't this a Pokèmon tournament?" asked the boy.

"It is," answered the man, "A _Couples_ Pokèmon tournament, you need a human partner."

"C-couples?" repeated Ash, his face a nice shade of red.

"Yes," said the man, adding, "Dating, engaged or married is preferred. So I'll ask again: who is your partner?"

Ash tried to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat, because he knew he was sunk. The boy was about to tell the man that he didn't have that kind of partner when a voice called out.

"There you are!" called Misty, walking up to her friend, "Have you finished signing us up for the Pokèmon tournament yet?"

The boy couldn't quite get the words to come out, he just stood there opening and closing his mouth like a beached Magikarp.

"You're his partner?" asked the man with a raised eyebrow.

"I am," said the girl as she put her arm around Ash's, she looked at the boy and added, "Didn't you tell him we're dating?"

"D-d-dating?" he wondered embarrassingly, finally finding his voice.

The girl looked at the man and gave a nervous laugh, "He's just being silly." Then Misty pulled Ash to the side and quietly said, "Brock told me you needed a partner, so I'm going help you win that tournament. Just play along."

After the boy nodded she brought him back to the table and said to the man with a smile, "Sorry about that, he was just so excited about signing up I think he forgot some minor details. He's always doing that, aren't you sweetie?"

The only thing the boy could do was nod, his face a bright red.

Looking at the two of them, the man gave a shrug and handed over some paperwork, "You'll need to fill out this form. Rules are rather easy: each of you can register up to 3 pokèmon, battles are 2-on-2 with each partner only using 1 pokèmon. Only when both pokèmon on one side are unable to battle will the victory be awarded."

"Thank you!" said the girl as she dragged Ash away from the table, all along the man watched them with an even more confused look.

When they got far enough away Misty released her hold on Ash's arm and scolded him, "You should've paid more attention to the poster, if you had you would have seen the tournament was for couples only. Now, because of you, we're in this mess."

"You didn't have to help me," countered the boy angrily.

"I couldn't very well leave you hanging like that," she replied, "Besides, you're going to have plenty more chances to make yourself look stupid."

"What do you mean by that?" he retorted, "If you get in the way, it'll be your fault if we lose."

The two of them glared at each other until Brock stepped between them, pushed them apart and said, "You two need to focus right now and pick the 3 pokèmon you're going to use."

Misty turned away and replied, "I'll go with Corsola, Politoed and Staryu."

"In that case I'll choose Bayleef, Cyndaquil and Pikachu as my team," added Ash.

"Good. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, you two have to start acting like a couple if you want to pull this off," he told them.

"We'll be fine," said the younger boy, defiantly adding, "We've done double battles before, this won't be any different."

"But you're going to have to work as a team to win here, Ash, and that requires the two of you to come up with a strategy, more than just attacking the opponents," explained Brock, "Most likely you'll run into teams that will have their pokèmon defend and help each other, much like couples would. Using both offense and defense will be key in how far you go."

"Defense isn't really Ash's strong suit, so I guess that will be my job," replied the girl in a mocking tone.

"Oh yeah?!" shouted Ash, giving her an angry glare, "I can be defensive if I need to, just watch me."

Brock sighed, "This may take awhile."

* * *

"Welcome one and all to our town's annual Valentine's Day Battling Couples Pokèmon Tournament!" called the Emcee over the loudspeaker system.

The small stadium-sized crowd erupted in cheers and shouts, lasting for a good five minutes.

When the noise finally died down enough, the Emcee continued, "This year we have 16 rough and tumble, fighting couples ready to battle it out for your viewing pleasure! And for the winning pair, as always we have our Battling Couples trophies, along with the Mystery Prize Pokèballs that are being guarded by the town's mayor."

A stout man in a black suit and matching top hat rose up out of his chair in his heavily guarded viewing box and waved to the crowd, and behind him sat the pokèballs and the trophies mentioned by the announcer. At first glance it looked like there was only one trophy; a golden heart sitting on top of 4 pillars; but one could just make out a zig-zag line down the middle of the heart so it could be separated into two.

The Emcee continued some more, "But what is in those pokèballs? Could they be legendary pokèmon perhaps? The only way to find out is to win! The rules are like any tag battle: it'll be 2-on-2 with each participant using only one pokèmon and the winners will the team that knocks out the opposing pokèmon. Let us not waste any more time and get right into it with our first battle of the afternoon!"

Again the crowd started cheering as the first couple, a man and a woman in their 40s, made their way onto the battlefield. She looked to be a doting housewife and he appeared to be a businessman of some sort.

"First up we have a local pair that keeps coming back year after year to our stage," said the Emcee, "Give it up for George and Marge!"

The crowd seemed to like them very much, they cheered for them by name.

The Emcee continued, "And making their first attempt, a young couple from the Kanto region, let's hear it for Ash and Misty!"

As the people in the stands cheered for them, the boy and girl walked out onto the field side by side; Ash having Pikachu on his shoulder of course, but Misty wasn't holding onto her Togepi, Brock had been given the task of babysitting; each of the humans had a bit of pink in their cheeks, having been called a couple by the announcer. They knew they had to play the part and play it up for the crowd, but both of them were nervous and embarrassed to even look out at the people.

Right as they reached the designated area for the trainers the judge for the match repeated the rules, "Each trainer can only use 1 pokèmon and the winners are the team that knocks out the other side. Good luck everyone."

"Here we go!" shouted the Emcee.

"Go Tauros!"; "Go Miltank!" called Marge and George, releasing their pokèmon.

"Bayleef!"; "Corsola!" answered Ash and Misty, doing the same.

"It looks like George and Marge are going with Tauros and Miltank, a couple in their own right, while Ash and Misty will be going with a Bayleef and a Corsola. Let's see which pokèmon combo is better," said the Emcee.

"Tauros, let's start off with a Take Down attack on that Bayleef," called the man.

The bull responded with an all out charge at it's target, leaving a cloud of dust behind it.

"Bayleef, dodge it and counter with your Razor Leaf!" commanded Ash.

Just as Bayleef jumped out of the way Marge said, "Now, Miltank use a Body Slam on Bayleef."

From out of the dust cloud the cow pokèmon appeared; as if it had been running behind it's partner; and jumped into the air over Bayleef, who could not attack or dodge in time.

Misty shouted, "Corsola, Tackle attack that Miltank, fast!"

The coral pokèmon dashed forward, but was too late as the Miltank made contact with Bayleef and pushed it to the ground. Corsola did however manage to hit the opponent and tackle it off it's own partner.

The crowd began cheering loudly as it looked like the pace for the battle was set.

Bayleef just managed to get to it's feet as Marge called out, "Miltank, be a dear and use your Rollout on that Bayleef."

Miltank rolled up into a ball and launched itself at Bayleef, kicking up more dust.

"Corsola, intercept it again with a Tackle attack!" shouted Misty, hoping to stop it this time.

"Tauros," replied George, "Use Take Down and head Corsola off!"

Before the coral pokèmon could stop the Rollout, Tauros appeared from the dust this time and pushed it aside, allowing Miltank to knock Bayleef onto it's back.

"Oh! It looks like George and Marge are going with their "Hidden Strike" strategy," said the Emcee to the crowd, who continued cheering on the battle, "We've seen them do this every year. How will the young couple come back from such tactics?"

"Good job, Miltank, keep using Rollout," commanded the woman as her pokèmon turned and headed for Bayleef again, once more leaving a cloud of dust behind it.

"Corsola, jump in front of Bayleef and take the attack!" shouted Misty.

The coral pokèmon did what it was told and stood in front of Bayleef, embracing itself for the Rollout, when George called out, "Tauros, lift Miltank up and over the Corsola!"

In one swift movement the bull, who was running behind it's partner as it had been the entire battle, lowered it's head and lifted the cow into the air. The entire crowd was in awe as Miltank soared over Corsola's head, aiming itself directly for Bayleef.

"Bayleef, try your Razor Leaf!" shouted Ash.

His pokèmon reacted in an instant, swinging the leaf on it's head around and launching a few leaves at it's opponent. And even though it did manage to make contact, the attack however didn't stop it and Miltank crashed hard onto Bayleef's back, pushing it to the ground.

"Tauros, Tackle the Corsola!" commanded George.

The coral pokèmon's attention had been on the airborne Miltank and couldn't react in time as the bull crashed headlong into it and pushing it onto it's partner's back.

"It looks like Miltank and Tauros have this battle well in hand," said the Emcee to the cheering crowd, "Ash and Misty haven't been able to get much offense going and their defensive tactics haven't been working against these two in-sync trainers."

"Bayleef, you okay?" wondered Ash.

"Corsola, can you keep going?" asked Misty.

The boy's pokèmon stood up to show it could continue, and the girl's pokèmon nodded to show it wasn't any worse for wear.

"Misty, what can we do? Everything we've tried hasn't worked. Bayleef can't take another Rollout from that Miltank," said Ash.

"I know, we don't have much chance unless we can think of something to stop that Tauros, as long as it can keep our pokèmon from helping each other, we'll lose," she replied.

It was at this moment she noticed how Corsola was standing on Bayleef's back and it gave her an idea.

"Miltank use your Rollout again and finish off that Bayleef," said Marge, and George added, "Follow right behind it, Miltank."

Both their pokèmon charged forward towards their opponents.

"It looks like George and Marge want to end this battle right here, right now," announced the Emcee.

"Hey Ash, I just thought of something," said the girl.

"What is it?" wondered the boy.

"When that Miltank gets close, have Bayleef dodge," she told him.

"But then Tauros will come out of the dust cloud and attack," he answered.

"That's what I'm counting on," she replied with a grin.

Closer and closer the Miltank came, it was mere feet away when Ash called out, "Bayleef, dodge it by jumping to the side!"

Just as his pokèmon did what he asked George countered, "Tauros, use your Double-Edge attack!"

And like before the bull appeared from the cloud of dust and charged for it's target.

"Now, Corsola, use your Water Gun to stop that Tauros in it's tracks!" said Misty.

Her pokèmon reacted, blasting a hard stream of water at it's opponent, holding it in it's place and keeping it from advancing.

"It actually looks like Ash and Misty's pokèmon still have some fight left in them," shouted the Emcee, "They're not going down without a fight, folks."

The crowd was louder than it had the entire battle, sides started forming and they started cheering for who they wanted to win.

"Miltank, help Taurous out, turn and take out both of their pokèmon," called Marge, and the cow made a wide turn and headed for both Bayleef and Corsola.

"Ash, have Bayleef stay put until I give the signal, okay?" said Misty, quietly.

"Right, I'm trusting you know what you're planning," replied the boy.

"I'm making it up as we go, but we're about to find out if it works," she told him.

Miltank was rolling at full speed towards it's opponents, while Corsola kept shooting out the stream of water at the Tauros and it still could not move forward.

"Tauros, bust through that Water Gun!" shouted George.

The bull gave a loud bellow and stomped it's feet harder into the ground, and slowly started pushing back against the flow. Miltank's Rollout was nearing ever so closer and yet Misty had not given the call.

"Okay, now!" yelled the girl and Ash said, "Bayleef, jump!"

His pokèmon did as commanded and jumped into the air, and the cow pokèmon rolled under them. Marge and George were too busy watching the jump and only realized it a moment too late as their pokèmon collided together, kicking up a large cloud of dust.

"What a move! Ash and Misty used their opponent's momentum against them!" shouted the Emcee among the roaring crowd.

"Bayleef use Razor Leaf!"; "Corosla, Spike Cannon!" commanded the young trainers.

A hail of spikes and leaves rained down on the dust cloud, kicking up even more than before.

Their pokèmon landed safely in front of them as the wind blew away the dust, showing both Miltank and Tauros out cold on the battlefield.

"Miltank, Tauros, both are unable to battle," said the referee, "Victory goes to Ash and Misty!"

Both boy, girl and yellow mouse raised their fists in victory, and the crowd rose from their seats and cheered loudly for the young trainer's.

The Emcee lowered his platform to the ground while saying to everyone, "What a battle, people, who would have though these two would be able to turn it around there at the end. Amazing showing by this young couple from Kanto. But let's give it up for George and Marge, their pokèmon fought hard today and deserve a round of applause."

The stadium was loud with the sounds of cheering for the losing couple as they waved and walked off the battlefield. Then as the clapping began to die down, Ash and Misty started to walk away.

"Where are you two going?" asked the Emcee, coming towards them.

"What do you mean?" wondered Misty.

"It's time for the question part of the battle," he told her, explaining, "After every battle we ask the winning couple a question about their relationship. It's all part of the tournament."

Both boy and girl stared at the man, this was the last thing they had expected to happen.

"Now," started the Emcee, turning to the crowd, "Since this is your first time participating, everyone here would like to know, how did you two meet?"

He put the microphone in Ash's face.

"Well, we... um...," stuttered the boy as his face began to turn red.

Luckily Misty was able to answer that question, "His Pikachu destroyed my bike. I was determined to have him pay me back for it, so we started traveling together."

A few people started to laugh and the boy's face went crimson and Pikachu tried to hide it's face.

The Emcee continued, "Really?"

She nodded, "Yeah, and he still hasn't paid me back yet."

More laughter arose from the crowd.

"Well, they do say love comes from the strangest of places," said the Emcee, "Thank you and good luck in the next round."

"Thank you!" said the girl as she pulled Ash away, and they walked off the field.

"Did you know there would be questions?" he asked her.

"No, not really," she replied, "But now we do, and if we win again we'll have to be ready for any kind of question, even if we have to make it up."

* * *

The rest of the battles continued, with couples of varying ages and status. And after each battle the winning couple was asked a question. Each question was different for each pair, depending on whether or not they have participated in the tournament before or not and, if they had, how many times. Ash and Misty watched from the back, he was more eager than ever for the second round to start. The last match of the first round featured last year's winning couple, an engaged couple in their early 20s, and according to the Emcee picked up where they left off and handily won against their opponents.

Once the final fight of the first round was completed and both sides of the field were cleared the crowd was buzzing with excitement over the action that had happened so far and were eager to keep things going. The announcer could feel the aura in the stadium and wasn't about to let it settle down.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the second round," announced the Emcee, and the crowd responded with more cheering, "Let's bring out our first couple: Ash and Misty!"

The people erupted in chanting of the pair's names as they walked out, acting different than their first time, walking with their heads held high and brimming with confidence.

"And their opponent's for this round, a young newlywed couple, John and Jane!" continued the Emcee, again with the crowd cheering loudly for the young man and woman as they walked out to the other side of the battlefield.

When both couples were ready, the referee gave the signal for them to start.

John and Jane were the first to send out their pokèmon, "Go, Nidorino!"; "Go, Nidorina!"

Misty and Ash followed suit, "Go, Politoed!"; " Go, Cyndaquil!"

"Here we go with the second round!" called the Emcee.

"Nidorino, start off with a Poison Sting attack on Cyndaquil!" commanded John, and his pokèmon reacted, opening it's mouth and shooting poisonous needles at the mouse pokèmon.

"Swift attack, Cyndaquil!" countered Ash, with it spinning head over heels, firing off stars towards the Nidorino.

Both attacks met halfway, colliding with each other and canceling the other out.

"Nidorina, Tackle attack that Politoed!" shouted Jane. Her pokèmon began charging for the toad.

Misty replied, "Politoed, stop it with your Water Gun!"

Her pokèmon shot a hard stream of water at it's charging opponent, and like last battle, stopped it dead in it's tracks. Then the force of the water pushed Nidorina backwards, finally overcome by sheer pressure of the water.

"Looks like these two teams are evenly matched, matching attack for attack. But one of them has to get the advantage, question is, which team will that be?" wondered the Emcee as the crowd chanted louder for the competitors.

"Cyndaquil, Flamethrower attack! Go!" called Ash, as the fire mouse opened it's mouth and let loose a burning stream of fire at the male poison pin pokèmon.

"Dodge it, Nidorino!" shouted John, and his partner responded by jumping to the side.

"Water Gun, Politoed, quickly!" said Misty, and in an instant another stream of water was fired from the toad pokèmon, hitting it's target.

"Nidorina, Double Kick!" answered Jane. Her pokèmon came charging forward, turned and used it's hind legs, planting them on target, pushing away the Politoed and halting the Water Gun.

"These four pokèmon are battling hard, not giving the other an inch," said the Emcee excitedly, joining in with the crowd, "Still waiting on the break out by one of these teams."

"Looks like we need to switch gears, Jane," said John.

His wife nodded, "Ready when you are."

Ash and Misty weren't going to wait, "Cyndaquil, Tackle attack!"; "Politoed, Double-slap attack!"

Both their pokèmon followed their orders and went for the Nido pair.

"Nidorino, Thunderbolt on the Politoed!" shouted John, while Jane added, "Nidorina, Water Gun!"

His pokèmon began to glow and shot off a bolt of lightning at the toad pokèmon and the female pokèmon fired off it's own stream of water aimed at the fire mouse. Neither of their opponents were expected it, as were their trainers, and could not dodge in time.

"Oh!" called the Emcee, as the stadium got behind the young married couple, "I don't think anyone was expecting some unconventional attacks like that!"

"Politoed, are you okay?" wondered the young girl with a concerned tone.

Her pokèmon stood and did it's best to shake off the attack it had received.

"Cyndaquil, can you get up?" asked Ash.

"Pika pika?" wondered Pikachu.

The fire mouse got up and flashed the fire on it's back to show it was okay.

"Ash, we've got to be careful about those pokèmon, they're able to learn a wide variety of moves, so we have to be ready for anything," explained Misty.

"Yeah," replied the boy.

Both John and Jane called, "Nidorino/Nidorina, Poison Sting attack!"

The pokèmon pair opened their mouths and fired their attacks.

"Dodge it!" shouted both young trainers and their partners responded, with Ash adding, "Cyndaquil, Smokescreen, go!"

The fire mouse let out a large cloud of black smoke that surrounded the battlefield. Nidorino and Nidorina cried out from having zero visibility.

Their trainers tried to respond, "Try a Thunderbolt, Nidorino!", and the male pokèmon fired off a bolt, but it's arc went skyward.

"Nidorina, Double Kick!" shouted Jane and her partner ran forward and kicked with it's hind legs, but did not make contact with anything.

Ash called out, "Cyndaquil, Swift attack!"

His pokèmon shot off a round of shinning stars and were aimed perfectly at both of it's opponents.

"It looks like John and Jane have been put on the defensive with that smoke on the field. But Cyndaquil with it's Swift is able to hit them with no problem," explained the Emcee.

John smirked as if this wasn't the big of a problem, "Nidorino, Dig attack, underground now!"

From under the cover of darkness, the pokèmon dug into the field. Unable to see, all trainers had to wait and see. Then in an instant, Politoed was launched into the air from being on the receiving end of the attack.

"Politoed!" cried a horrified Misty, seeing her pokèmon rising helplessly into the air.

"Now, Nidorina, jump and use Double Kick!" commanded Jane, and her pokèmon responded by jumping out of the smoke and into the air close to where the toad pokèmon was.

The young woman's partner turned and used it's back feet to kick Politoed back towards the ground.

"Politoed!" screamed Misty again as the toad pokèmon disappeared back into the smoke and the sound of a thud echoed through the stadium.

From the spot where the pokèmon landed, the smoke swirled around due to the disturbed air.

"Cyndaquil, aim a Flamethrower up at Nidorina!" shouted the boy and a stream of fire shot out of the smoke and hit it's midair target.

With it's body blackened by the flames, the female poison pin pokèmon fell back down to the field.

"Nidorino, catch her!" called out a concerned John.

His pokèmon ran to it's partner, jumping at the last second as Nidorina disappeared back into the black cloud. The crowd was at a standstill, still unable to see thru the smoke. But again the air around had been disturbed and the cloud began to dissipate. When it had cleared enough the referee was finally able to make sense of what had happened. Politoed was laid out in a crater on the field, while Nidorino was putting Nidorina gently on the ground.

"Both Politoed and Nidorina are unable to battle!" said the referee, making his decision.

The female trainers called back their pokèmon as the crowd started to cheer again.

"You better win this, Ash," demanded Misty.

"Make him pay for burning my Nidorina," said Jane behind tears in her eyes.

John and the boy locked eyes and called out at the same time, "Tackle attack!"

Cyndaquil and Nidorino ran at each other with full force and collided in the middle of the field.

"Horn Attack, Nidorino!" shouted the young man and his partner responded by jabbing it's horn into the fire mouse and pushing it backwards.

"Quick Attack, Cyndaquil!" countered Ash, and his pokèmon dashed forward like a blur, making contact with it's opponent.

"It looks like neither trainer is willing to give up," announced the Emcee, "But one of them is going to have to give in here soon, their pokèmon don't look like they can last much longer."

"Dig, Nidorino!" commanded John.

His pokèmon dug back into the ground and all Ash and his Cyndaquil could do was wait.

"Keep and eye out, Cyndaquil, we don't know where it'll pop up," he told his partner.

It seemed like an eternity while the eerily stadium waited for Nidorino to come back up.

Until John suddenly shouted, "Now, Nidorino!"

That was what Ash was waiting for. Before the pokèmon burst thru the field, he called out, "Jump and aim your Flamethrower down at the Nidorino!"

Cyndaquil did what it was told, jumping up into the air, and when Nidorino popped out of the ground to strike it was met with a face full of fire. The poison pin pokèmon was pushed back into the hole it had created by the force of the flame. Only after the fire mouse extinguished it's attack was the referee able to see the condition of Nidorino.

"Nidorino is unable to battle!" said the referee, "The winners are Ash and Misty!"

"Once again it seems Ash and Misty were able to pull out the victory!" shouted the Emcee, "What a match!"

The crowed erupted in cheers for the young pair of trainers, who also started to celebrate. Chants of their names were being heard again. John recalled his pokèmon and consoled his crying wife. Then like that, they walked away, defeated just like their partners.

"Let's give it up for John and Jane, they fought hard today, but it just wasn't enough," said the announcer as he once again lowered his platform and made his way over to Ash and Misty, "But now we get to ask this intriguing young couple yet another question as they advance to the semifinals."

Both youngsters stood ready and waiting for the Emcee's question.

The man walked right up to Ash and said, "Last time Misty answered our question, so this time it's your turn, young man."

"Okay," replied the boy, visibly nervous.

"Tell us in your own words, what is it about Misty that you like the most?" wondered the man.

The girl's eyes went wide and her cheeks went pink, surprised at the question. It was such an intimate question, she was sure Ash wouldn't be able to answer it without making up something outrageous. The black-haired boy took a minute before he answered, looking like he had to give it some thought.

"She's a pain in the neck, always bossing me around, she's a bit of a tomboy with a nasty temper..." starting the young man, as he counted them off on his fingers.

If he had been looking at Misty he would have seen that temper he talked about flare up on her face, her cheeks red with rage and her eyes flashed with that inner fire.

Then his answer changed, "But she's also a goodhearted friend and always willing to help both people and pokèmon. Out of it all, if there was one thing I like most about her is that she's always been there for me and I wouldn't have it any other way."

Pikachu added, "Pikachu!"

And just as quickly as it appeared, her anger vanished and was replaced with a deep embarrassment, the crimson color on her face matching it. She didn't know what it was she was feeling, nor could she tell whether what Ash said was the truth or just something he made up in the moment, all she knew was that it had sparked a reaction inside her chest.

"I must say, you two are an interesting pair," said the Emcee, "But I think we've got a good idea about what keeps you together. Good luck with the semifinals."

The boy nodded and walked off the field, and the girl followed a step behind him, her head held low to hide the rosy state of her face from the cheering crowd. When they reached the waiting room and were alone the girl just had to know something.

"Hey Ash?" she started.

"What is it Misty?" he wondered.

"What you said out there, did you really mean it?" she asked.

He looked into her shimmering blue-green eyes and lost all conscious thought, he saw behind them a pure curiosity in her question. He could feel that if he answered her honestly, she wasn't going to ridicule or scold him for saying what his heart has been telling him for so long.

"Well, I..." began the boy as he started to blush.

"Well, well. Look what we got here," said a new male voice.

Both Ash and Misty turned and came face to face with another couple.

"Aww, how cute. It looks like we interrupted something important," said the woman in a mocking tone.

"Who are you?" asked the girl.

She already knew who they were, they were last year's winners. Both in their early to mid 20s, the engaged couple certainly were the ones to beat.

"We're Dan and Patty, and we're going to win this tournament like we did last year," said Dan, a young man with the shoulder length light purple hair.

They definitely had the confidence to back up that claim, having gotten so far this year without much problems.

"What we don't need are two little upstart trainers getting in our way," added Patty, brushing a hand thru her short black hair with it's yellow highlighted tips.

"If you two were smart, you'd quit now before we embarrass you out there, that is if you make it to the finals," smirked the young man, "But after seeing how close you were to losing this round, I'd say that's a long shot."

"Why you," growled Ash, "We'll see you in the finals, and we'll beat you too, right Misty?"

She agreed, "Yeah, then you'll be eating those words of yours."

Pikachu added, "Pika-pika!"

The young woman feigned fear and wrapped her hands around her fiancè's arm, "Sweetie, they're scaring me, make the mean little kids stop."

Dan gave a chuckle, "It's alright, dear, let's go and leave these children to dream."

As they walked away, the young trainers could hear laughter coming from the older couple.

When Dan and Patty were gone Misty turned on Ash and said, "We can't lose to them."

"If we face them in the finals, we'll show them what these 'little kids' can do," he told her with a smile.

Pikachu chimed in with a, "Pika!"

* * *

The second round went quicker than the first, with there only being 4 battles instead of 8, so it didn't take long before Ash and Misty were to be back out on the field for the semifinals. They were anxious to get the battle out of the way so they could prepare for Dan and Patty in the finals. They had watched the engaged couple's last battle and knew they'd be in for a hard time. Their battle style was like a perfectly executed dance, each move complimented the other so well and the pokèmon reflected their trainers too, graciously attacking and defending with ease. After they had won and answered their question, the two older trainers walked back to the locker room and passed by Ash and Misty, and though they acted like they didn't see them, the way they spoke; saying this tournament will be easier than last year; certainly didn't go unnoticed by the younger pair.

"What a battle! Patty and Dan had complete control from beginning to end, folks," said the Emcee, unable to hide his excitement from the roaring crowd, "Now we move on to the semifinal matches, who out of the 4 remaining teams will get to compete for the Battling Couples trophies and our Mystery Prize pokèballs? Only one way to find out. Let's bring out the surprise pair of the day and sure to be the black horse team to win: Ash and Misty!"

The crowd's cheering was louder for the two young trainers than it had been all day as they made their way to their side of the battlefield, waving to the people in the stadium as they went along.

"And their opponents: a pair of pokèmon breeders, this husband and wife team are returning after a year's hiatus and they will try to reach the hilltop once again. Please give it up for the former champions: Anna and Will!" called the announcer.

This time the stadium was alive with thunderous applause as the aforementioned wedded partners walked together towards the field. They didn't appear to be too effected by the reception, their faces told the story that they were ready for this fight.

"Good luck everyone," said the referee, "Begin the match."

"Ready, Pikachu?" asked Ash.

"Pika!" replied his pokèmon friend as it jumped from his shoulder onto the field.

"Go, Staryu!" called Misty, releasing her starshape pokèmon.

"Go, Butterfree!"; "Beedrill, you're up!" added their opponents, also letting out their partners.

"Ahh!" screamed the orange haired girl, as she cowered behind Ash, "B-b-bug pokèmon!"

"Uh-oh, this doesn't look like a good start for the pair from Kanto. If she doesn't battle, it'll be over quick for them," said the Emcee.

The crowd sounded like they agreed with him, they were murmuring among themselves. Ash started looking around, concern appearing on his face at the sounds around them.

"Misty," he said softly, looking at the shivering head of orange hair on his shoulder.

A whimper was her answer. The boy looked over at their opponents and saw they weren't in any hurry to attack them while they were preoccupied.

"Misty," said Ash again, "I can't do this without you."

She looked up at him with tears in her eyes, "Y-you mean that?"

He smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I do," he held out his hand for her, "Come on, let's do this together."

Misty wiped her eyes and took his hand, "Okay."

The crowd began to clap loudly, showing their support for her. Even their opponents were clapping. The girl did her best to come out from behind her friend and stand beside him. She was still scared having bug pokèmon nearby, but she felt a little better knowing Ash was right there beside her. It was the confident tone in his voice that comforted her the most.

The referee asked her, "Are you okay to start?"

She nodded, "Yeah."

"Alright, let the match begin," he said.

Ash was the first to give an order, "Pikachu, Quick Attack that Beedrill!"

The yellow mouse dashed forward in a flash, running headlong into the bee pokèmon.

"Butterfree, Tackle attack the Pikachu!" countered Anna, and the butterfly flew fast and knocked Pikachu away.

"U-use your own Tackle on the Butterfree, Staryu!" said Misty. The star pokèmon spun towards it's target.

"Beedrill, stop it with your Twineedle attack!" called Will, and his partner, stabbed it's opponent with it's forearm stingers before Staryu could make contact.

"These four trainers have started off fast and furious," said the announcer, as the crowd started picking sides.

"Butterfree, Gust attack both of them!" ordered Anna.

The butterfly flapped it's wings, whipping up the air and pushing the strong winds at both Pikachu and Staryu. The mouse and star pokèmon tried to hold their ground against the gusting air, but slowly began getting pushed back.

"Beedrill, Fury Attack!" commanded Will.

The bee pokèmon flew forward, using the winds to boost it's speed and reached Staryu in a few seconds.

"Staryu, dodge those stingers!" called Misty, her confidence growing with each passing minute, as Beedrill began trying to stab it.

The starshape pokèmon's reaction time wasn't fast enough and the Fury Attack made contact multiple times.

"Pikachu, stop that Beedrill with another Quick Attack!" said Ash.

His buddy ran as fast as it could to help out it's tag partner, but Butterfree's Gust pushed Pikachu away and prevented it from helping. Beedrill's last attack on Staryu pushed it back towards it's partner, then it flew back to it's trainer, as it and Butterfree waited for their next order.

"It seems the flying bug pair have the advantage," announced the Emcee, "All that breeding has paid off for Anna and Will."

"Staryu, are you okay?" wondered Misty.

Her pokèmon stood up on two of it's points and shook itself off, it's red core still glowing brightly.

"How about you, Pikachu?" asked Ash

"Pika!" replied the yellow mouse, flashing a spark of lightning.

"Butterfree, try a Swift attack!" said Anna, and from it's wings came glowing stars aimed at it's opponents.

"Staryu, counter with your own Swift attack!" replied Misty.

The starshaped pokèmon shot off it's own stars from it's red core and both attacks met in the middle in an explosion of smoke.

"A stalemate, folks," said the Emcee, "Both pokèmon tried the same attack and got nothing to show for it."

"Beedrill, thru the smoke and aim a Twineedle at the Staryu," ordered Will.

The bee burst thru the smoke and had it's forearm stingers ready to stab it's target.

"Pikachu, Quick Attack! Stop that Beedrill!" responded Ash, and his partner dashed forward and rammed right into Beedrill before it made contact with Staryu.

"Another evenly matched set of pokèmon, these trainers certainly know how to raise strong pokèmon," said the Emcee.

"Butterfree, charge up your Solarbeam attack!" commanded Anna.

The butterfly flew up above the battlefield and it's wings began to glow as it started to gather up the sunlight needed for it's attack.

"Ash if that Solarbeam hits, we won't stand a chance," said a worried Misty, "How are we going to stop it?"

"I got an idea," he said, "Have Staryu attack it."

"But Beedrill will stop Staryu before it can reach Butterfree," she told him.

"That's what I'm hoping for," he replied, "Just trust me."

"Okay," she answered, adding, "Staryu, Tackle the Butterfree, stop it from charging!"

The starshape pokèmon spun like a top towards the butterfly, aimed at taking away it's concentration.

Will quickly ordered, "Beedrill, use you Fury Attack to knock Staryu off it's course!"

It flew at Staryu and began stabbing it's stingers, making contact and pushing it's opponent away.

Ash grinned, "Now, Pikachu, use your Thunderbolt on the Butterfree!"

"Pika!" shouted the yellow mouse as it flashed with a bright yellow glow and unleashed a bolt of lightning at it's target.

Unable to get help from it's tag partner, Butterfree could not dodge the attack and shockwaves rippled thru it's body as the Thunderbolt hit it's mark.

"Butterfree!" shouted Anna, as her pokèmon fell down to the ground, it's body covered in scorch marks from the attack it had taken.

"A tremendous Thunderbolt from the Pikachu!" called the Emcee to the cheering crowd.

"Butterfree is unable to battle!" said the referee.

"Why didn't you do that at the start?" wondered Misty.

"Heheh," replied Ash with a nervous look on his face, "I didn't think of it."

Anna recalled her partner, and thanked it for a hard fought battle. Will on the other hand, looked like he knew he was backed into a corner. He certainly was at a disadvantage being against 2 pokèmon.

"Beedrill, you ready?" he asked.

The bee buzzed a little louder to show it was ready to go down fighting.

"Hey Misty," said Ash.

The girl looked at him, confused, "What is it?"

"You want to take control from here?" he wondered.

She replied with a, "Huh?"

"Pikachu, come here," said the boy.

"What is this?" wondered the Emcee, "Ash is calling back his Pikachu? What could he be thinking?"

The people filling the stadium were just as confused, mumbling to themselves at the unusual move by the boy.

Pikachu walked over and stood at the line, "Pika?"

"What are you doing?" asked the girl.

"I think you should finish the match," he told her, "It's not fair being 2-on-1, if it's just Beedrill and Staryu, it's fair again."

"Are you sure?" she asked him, "And if Staryu loses?"

"Then Pikachu and I will be ready to jump back in," explained the boy, "Pikachu will just sit back here and let you handle things."

He looked at his pokèmon and added, "Right, Pikachu?"

"Pika pika!" replied the mouse.

"Unprecedented, people," announed the Emcee, "Ash is going to let Misty and her Staryu go one-on-one with Will and his Beedrill. I have never seen anything like this before."

Misty looked at the task before her and her eyes quivered with fear in them, she wished Ash didn't do that to her and would keep battling with her to advance in the tournament. But she knew that if they were to win she had to do it herself and against a bug pokèmon on top of it.

Will started things off, "Beedrill, Poison Sting attack!"

The bee pokèmon flew forward, brandishing it's stingers again. The young man wasn't affected too much by the withdrawl of the Pikachu and was ready to show it right from the start.

"Dodge it, Staryu!" ordered the girl, and her partner jumped away.

"Keep trying to sting it, Beedrill!" said the pokèmon breeder, as his pokèmon followed it's orders and attacked again and again.

Staryu kept dodging and jumping away, not letting Beedrill make contact with those poison-tipped stingers.

"If you keep dodging you won't be able to attack back," said Ash.

"I know!" shouted the girl, "But it's all we can do right now."

"Rage attack, Beedrill!" commanded Will.

Anger seemed to flare up in the bee pokèmon's eyes and it's stabbing forearm stingers started moving faster. Staryu continued to dodge, but those stingers were getting closer and closer to making contact. Ash wanted to let Pikachu help, but wasn't about to go back on his word. He knew Misty would figure out something. Soon every now and then Beedrill's attacks began to hit Staryu, and slowly the red core in it's center started to blink.

"Staryu's almost done, folks," announced the Emcee, "Looks like Ash's idea is about to backfire on him."

"Now, Beedrill, Fury Attack! Finish off the Staryu!" said Will.

Beedrill backed away for a moment and then launched itself at Staryu again.

That split second was all Misty would need and called out, "Staryu, Water Gun attack!"

The starshape pokèmon fired off a forceful blast of water that caught the bee offguard and pushed it backwards and onto the gorund.

"Get up and go after it with a Poison Sting, Beedrill," replied Will, trying to motivate his pokèmon back into the air.

Beedrill tried to flap fast enough to get airborne again, but it's wings were too soaked with water to keep itself in the air long enough.

Misty gave her pokèmon another order, "Tackle attack it, Staryu!"

Her partner spun like a ninja star and collided with it's target, knocking Beedrill to the ground yet again. Then it started to spin upwards.

"Finish it with your Swift attack!" shouted the orange haired girl, and her pokèmon shot off another round of stars and hitting it's grounded opponent.

Staryu landed in front of it's trainer and the two of them waited for the other side's reaction.

"Beedrill is unable to battle," announced, the referee, "The winners are Staryu and Pikachu. Ash and Misty move on to the finals!"

"Alright, Misty!"; "Pika-pika, Pikachu-pi!" yelled Ash and Pikachu, both of them very proud of their friend.

A deafening roar erupted from the crowd, who had been on the edge of their seats there at the end of the match. Nobody knew what was going to happen, but regardless of who won, the crowd felt they deserved that first spot in the final match of the tournament.

"Amazing comeback from the girl from the Kanto region. An all-around wonderful battle," shouted the Emcee, trying to be heard over the cheering staduim, "All four trainers gave it their all, everything was left out on that field in this one. Let's hear it for all of them!"

Misty looked out at the crowd and realized she took down a bug pokèmon and wasn't very afraid as she did it. She looked over at Ash, who was smiling at her, and smiled back, thankful he was there to help her try and get over her fear of bug pokèmon.

Will called back his Beedrill and after he gave Misty and Ash an approving nod, he and Anna walked off the field, their dreams of becoming champions passed on to their opponents.

The Emcee walked off his platform and made his way once again towards the young pair from Kanto. He said, "That was truly a great battle you two fought, and with the finals to look forward to, I bet you can't wait to see who you will be facing for the title of Battling Couple, huh?"

"We're ready for whoever it is," replied Ash.

"Good, now it's Misty's turn to answer the same question we asked Ash last round," explained the man, "What is it about Ash that you like most?"

"He's stubborn and won't take advice, he's always going off on his own, and I swear he thinks more about pokèmon than anything, unless it's food," she started, sounding like she was using Ash's answer against him.

The boy began to get a sheepish grin on his face, embarrassed by what she was saying.

She continued, "But he will always help someone in need of it. He cares about helping others, even if he ends up getting hurt from it. He'll always put the need of others over his own. I guess that's what I like about him most. He's never one to leave a friend behind."

"Terrific answer, I'm sure he's glad to have someone like you by his side," said the Emcee, turning to the crowd, "Wouldn't you say, folks?"

The stadium clapped and cheered for the young pair, giving their agreement and approval of her response.

"Good luck to you two in the finals, you're going to need it," said the Emcee, before he walked back to his platform.

Ash and Misty waved to the crowd, as they chanted their names, and went back to the locker room to wait and see who the other finalists would be. Just as they turned the corner they came face to face with Dan and Patty again, and the two of them were giving the younger trainers a slow and sarcastic clapping.

"You're lucky that wasn't us out there, we wouldn't have given you as much leeway as they did," said Dan.

"Very cute, are you trying to play up to the crowd with those answers?" asked Patty, "Or is that really how you feel about each other?"

"What's it to you?" wondered Misty with a glare in her eye.

"We don't really care how sappy you make your story, it won't matter once we beat you and win the trophies," answered the man as he and his fiancè walked past the two younger trainers.

Just before they were gone, Patty added, "We do hope your pokèmon aren't too tuckered out from all your close battles. It'd be a shame if we were to win before being able to give the crowd a good show."

The last thing that came from the engaged pair was some of that same snide laughter from before.

When they were gone, Ash said to Misty, "Don't listen to them, we'll show them real soon."

"Pika pika!" agreed Pikachu.

"Yeah," said the girl, "We'll show them."

* * *

It certainly didn't take long for the other semifinal match to be finished. The battle was really one-sided with Dan and Patty once again in control from the start, their opponents weren't able to mount much offense, though did manage to get a few hits in. Watching it didn't help with Ash and Misty's confidence either, they could see they had their work cut out for them.

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, it all comes down to this: the final match of the Valentine's Day Battling Couples Tournament," announced the Emcee, and the crowd gave a loud and long cheer before he continued, "We've seen some fierce battles today and heard some amazing answers from our couples. But now it's time to decide a winner and since Dan and Patty are still out on the field let's have our other finalists come out here too!" The crowd began to clap louder as the Emcce said, "Give it up for Ash and Misty!"

The two young trainers walked to their side of the field and locked eyes with their opponents. The stadium was alive with cheers for both pairs, they knew this would be a battle to remember.

Dan smirked and said, "Looks like you little kids aren't going to chicken out of this battle, huh?"

"No way!" shouted Misty, "We've gone too far to give up now!"

"Well it ends here, you can't win against us," boasted Patty, also with a smirk on her face.

"It seems these two teams are all ready to start this thing off," said the Emcee, "And I for one, can't wait!"

The referee announce, "Begin the battle!"

"Ready, Pikachu?" Ash asked his little friend.

The yellow mouse jumped off his shoulder and readied itself, "Pika!"

"Corsola! Go!" added Misty, bringing out her coral pokèmon.

Dan called out, "Go, Espeon!"

Patty shouted, "Umbreon, you're up!"

Both moonlight and sun pokèmon looked primed and ready.

"Looks like Dan and Patty are being serious here, folks, those are the same two pokèmon they used to win last year," said the Emcee.

The faces on the engaged couple showed how much confidence they had, it was like they didn't expect much of a fight from the younger trainers.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt attack!" ordered Ash, and Pikachu responded with the yellow flash and it firing the lightning bolt.

Dan and Patty smiled and said together, "Quick Attack!"

Both Espeon and Umbreon dashed forward and the bolt hit the ground behind them. Then as they got closer they began crisscrossing and switching sides. Corsola and Pikachu were confused, they couldn't tell which one was aimed at them.

Misty called out, "Corsola! Water Gun, go!"

The coral pokèmon fired off a stream of water, but the two Eevee evolutions were uneffected and unabaded, still crisscrossing their attack pattern, going over and under the water. Then without warning they two attacking pokèmon leapt over their targets and then ran back to their trainers.

"What in the world was that?" wondered an angry Misty.

"We're just having some fun before we finish you off," said Dan.

"We told you: it wouldn't be any fun if we couldn't give these people a show," added Patty.

"Oh! It looks like Dan and Patty have no respect for the trainers from Kanto," said the announcer, "Not even putting in an effort yet and they've got Ash and Misty reeling."

"But if you want us to get serious we can," said Dan before calling out, "Espeon, use your Psybeam and aim for the Pikachu!"

The jewel on the sun pokèmon's head lit up and it fired off a rainbow colored beam of light.

"Umbreon, Faint Attack on the Corsola!" added Patty, and her pokèmon disappeared in a blur.

"Where did it go?" wondered the younger girl, as she and her partner looked around for it.

"Pikachu, dodge it and try your Thundershock!" said Ash.

The yellow mouse jumped away, but suddenly umbreon appeared out of nowhere and plowed into Corsola. The momentum from the blow knocked the coral pokèmon into Pikachu, and from that contact it was pushed back into the Psybeam's path just in time for the mouse pokèmon to get hit with the attack.

"Both attacks hit their mark, The defending champions come out strong after that first display," said the Emcee, "How are Ash and Misty coming back this time?"

"Use your Swift attack, Espeon!" ordered Will.

The jewel on it's head began to glow again and shinning stars came out aimed for it's opponets.

"Corsola, Spike Cannon!" countered Misty.

Ash added, "Thundershick, Pikachu!"

Both pokèmon started to charge their attacks when Patty shouted out, "Stop them with your Sand-Attack, Umbreon!"

Very quickly the moonlight pokèmon turned and kicked up some of the battlefield with it's hindlegs and kicked into the eyes of both Pikachu and Corsola, making it hard for them to see where to aim their attacks. the stars of Espeon's attack hit their mark, pushing the mouse and coral pokèmon backwards.

"It looks like Patty and Dan are doing what they do best, control a match from beginning to end," announced the Emcee.

"Umbreon," called the woman, "Faint Attack that Corsola, go!"

The black and yelow pokèmon disappeared again in a blur and all Misty could do was wait to see where it would be coming from.

Will wanted to keep the pressure up, "Espeon, Quick Attack the Corsola!"

Espeon dashed forward to it's target, but Ash quickly said, "Intercept that with your own Quick Attack, Pikachu!"

Pkachu followed suit and managed to block the sun pokèmon from reaching the water pokèmon. However the mouse could not prevent Umbreon from appearing behing Corsola and knocking it to the ground again.

"Corsola, Recover!" called out Misty, and her pokèmon's body glowed white as it healed some of it's wounds.

"Ash and Misty aren't giving the defneding champions an ich here, folks. They came to fight and that's just what they're doing," said the Emcee as the crowd kept cheering loudly for the 4 trainers.

Will and Patty called out there next attacks, "Espeon, try your Quick Attack again!"; "Umbreon, get in there with a Bite attack!"

Their Eevee evolution pair followed their orders and went after their opponents.

However just as the Eevee evolution pair were on top of their opponents, Ash and Misty countered, "Pikachu, Quick Attack!"; "Corsola, Water Gun!"

The mouse and coral pokèmon reacted in an instant, Pikachu rushed forward and caught Umbreon in the chest and Corsola's stream of water pushed Espeon backwards with it's sheer force.

"Now control looks to be squarely in the corner of the couple from Kanto," said the Emcee, "It's starting to not look good for the defending champions."

Patty and Will were utterly surprised that the battle wasn't as easy as they first thought. Yet they continued to keep their calm as they went for another double team attack.

"Espeon, use Psybeam!"; "Umbreon get in there with a Bite!"

The moon pokèmon charged for Corsola as the sun pokèmon released another rainbow colored beam from the jewel on it's head, also aimed for the coral pokèmon.

"Corsola, Mirror Coat!" called Misty and a blue glow circled her partner's bosy.

Umbreon managed to clamp it's jaw onto one of Corsola's horns just as the beam of psychic energy hit as well, but the Mirror Coat stopped the beam in it's tracks before turning around and heading for Espeon. The sun pokèmon cried out in pain from being on the receiving end of it's own attack.

"Pikachu, get Umbreon off Corsola with a Quick Attack!" ordered Ash.

The yellow mouse dashed forward and rammed it's shoulder into it's target, forcing it to release it's hold on Corsola.

"Incredible back and forth action here, Espeon's atack was turned on itself and has taken some serious damage from it," said the Emcee as the roaring stadium was fully behind Ash and Misty.

Will gritted his teeth and Patty was seething, they had completely lost control of the battle and they weren't liking it.

The man shouted, "Psychic attack, Espeon!"

The purplish pokèmon's entire body began to glow, it's eyes shinning with an eerie light.

Misty was ready for it, "Corsola, Mirror Coat again!"

But Patty had her own command, "Umbreon, Faint Attack, hit that Corsola quickly!"

The moonlight pokèmon disappeared once more and this time reappeared suddenly right behind the coral pokèmon before it could act and ran headlong into it, interupting it's concentration. The light from Espeon's body flashed and then surrounded Corsola and lifted it into the air.

"Pikachu, stop it with a Thunderbolt!" called the boy, and his partner let loose it's bolt of lightning and hitting the sun pokèmon with deadly aim.

Espeon fell to the ground from the attack and Corsola was released from it's grasp, but not before it's eyes became glazed over and it had taken damage from the attack.

The referee looked at the down pokèmon and made his decision, "Both Corsola and Espeon are unable to battle!"

The stadium shook from the sheer volume of cheers from the crowd, this battle to determine the champion was more than they ever thought it could be. Misty and Will recalled their pokèmon and became spectators to the remainder of the bout.

"In an astonishing turn of events, a pokèmon from both sides has been knocked out of this match!" shouted the Emcee, "And it doesn't look like the action is about to stop!"

"How dare you do that to my boyfriend's pokèmon, little boy, you'll pay for that!" cried Paty as she added, "Umbreon, use your Headbutt!"

The black pokèmon rushed forward with it's head down, ready to run Pikachu over.

"Pikachu, counter with your Quick Attack," said Ash quickly.

His partner responded quickly, dashing towards the opponent with blazing speed. The two pokèmon met in the center of the battlefield, their heads knocking together.

"Both of these pokèmon look worn out, folks," announced the man.

And he was right, both Umbreon and Pikachu were breathing hard, exhausted from the fight, though neither looke like they were about to give into the other.

Patty had a determined look on her face as she called out her next command, "Umbreon, Faint Attack!"

In an instant her pokèmon was gone in a blur once again, leaving Pikachu to be on edge for when it would appear again.

"Get ready, Pikachu, we don't know where it'll come from, " Ash told his friend.

"Pika!" nodded the mouse as it waited.

"Now!" called out the woman and the moonlight pokèmon appearedright beside Pikach and knocked it to the ground. Before the yellow mouse could get up, Patty ordered another attack, "Bite attack, now!"

Without warning, Umbreon clamped it's jaws down onto Pikachu's tail. The yellow pokèmon cried out in pain for a few seconds then turned it's head and looked at the opponent biting it.

Ash smiled and said, "Pikachu, Thunder."

"Pika..." replied his partner in an angry tone before letting loose it's most powerful attack.

The lightning coursed thru Umbreon's body, forcing it to let go as it cried out in serious pain.

"An incredible Thunder attack!" shouted the Emcee as the crowd went silent for the first time the entire battle.

When Pikachu finished it's attack, smoke began to rise up from the moonlight pokèmon, it stood there motionless with it's eyes closed. Patty and Ash looked on, her more anxious for her partner. Then slowly it fel onto it's side, out cold from the electricity that went thru it's body.

"Umbreon is unable to battle! Pikachu wins the match, the wimmers of the tournament are Ash and Misty!" said the referee loudly.

Like a roaring wave rising up on the horizion, the cheering of the people in the stadium were shaking the foundation. Misty and Ash began cheering along with them, celebrating their well deserved victory. As the girl had her eyes closed she became surprised when the boy started to hug her tightly and then felt her feet rise up off the ground a little bit. She began to blush from it all and hugged him back. It took a second before he realized what he was doing and a second more to find out she was hugging him back, he gently placed her back on her feet and she psuhed away slightly so to look him in the eyes.

Their gazes locked together and the sound around them started to fade away. The only thing they were noticing was each other. They smiled at one another, knowing they couldn't have gottne to this point without each other.

"Hey," said a voice.

The two young trainers' attention was snapped back and the looked to see both Will and Patty standing before them.

"We want to apologize for what we said earlier," said the man, "We didn't really mean any of it, we just wanted to win again so badly."

"We thought if we intimidated you, you'd get scared and quit, but we were wrong," added the woman, "And we certainly didn't expect you two to be so strong."

"Same here, you guys are very good trainers," said Ash. Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder and added, "Pikachu!"

The engaged couple laughed before Will held out his hand. Ash didn't hesistate and shook it, accepting their apology and their congradulations.

"Hope we'll meet again and have another great battle," said Patty as she and her fiancè turned and started to walk away.

"We look forward to it!" called Misty.

* * *

"Let's bring up our winning couple to receive their prizes!" said the mayor.

The crowd was waiting anxiously for the awarding of the trophy and pokèballs. Ash and Misty made their way to the mayor's private box and were greeted by his friendly smile.

He called out to the crowd, "We had some wonderful battles today, and this pair of trainers rose above all the others to claim the title of Battling Couple. I can say for everyone here that we wish the two of you the best as you move forward together, for without the other you wouldn't have gotten as far as you did."

The mayor took both pieces of the trophy and handed one half to each of the trainers. The stadium full of people began to clap loudly for them as they liefted their half into the air in celebration.

"Now, let us see the kiss!" shouted a few people from below the private box.

Ash and Misty looked utterly confused by what they had said, he asked the mayor, "What are they talking about?"

"It's the last tradition of the tournament," he told them, "The winning couple gets to share the customary celebratory kiss that comes from being named the champions."

Both of the trainer's eyes went wide with shock.

"You mean we have to kiss?" wondered the girl.

"If you want those mystery pokèballs, you will," said the man.

The boy had another lump in his throat, a kiss was the last thing he expected to do today. Misty looked like she had swallowed a Caterpie as they turned to face each other. The ystood there montionless for the longest time, neither one of them wanted to move closer to the other.

"This isn't your first kiss, is it?" asked the mayor.

"No!" replied Misty quickly. Ash added, "We've kissed tons of times."

"Well, one more isn't that big of a deal, right?" he said.

"It is only one little kiss, right Ash?" said Misty.

"Yeah," he said turning his head slightly, "But shouldn't it be-"

He never got out the rest of his sentenc, because the girl had grabbed onto his jacket and pulled him forward, pressing his lips against hers. The crowd cheered and whooped loudly for them as the mayor clapped his approval. Pikachu watched them and giggled, it knew it was something that was going to happen sooner or later.

Time seemed to have stopped as they stay with their lips locked. For Misty, she was only doing it at first for the prize, but then it started to feel good and she took her arms and wrapped them around Ash's neck. The boy was surprised by the girl's actions, as if their first kiss wasn't anything to get excited about, yet then he felt her arms wrap around him and the kiss began to soften against his his hand on her waist, his first kiss as well as hers was something to get excited about. When they broke it finally the mayor was waiting patiently for them.

"Now, that wasn't so hard, was it?" he asked.

Both young trainers were blushing as the man turned his back to them then when he came back around he handed each of them a pokèball.

"Congradulations for winning and hopefully we'll see you back again next year," finished the man before turning to the crowd, "Let's hear it for the Battling Couple of Ash and Misty!"

Raising the pokèballs over their heads, both Ash and Misty couldn't look the other in the eyes and when one looked the other would turn away to make it look like they weren't looking.

* * *

Leaving the stadium, the two trainers were studying their new pokèballs closely.

"I wonder what kind of pokèmon is in here," said Ash.

"Why don;t we find out?" asked Misty.

They lifted the balls, about ready to throw them, when Brock floating into their view. He had on a goofy looking grin, the same one he'd have when he met a pretty girl. And in his arms, smiling and waving it's little arms was Togepi.

"What happened to you?" wondered the girl.

That was when she noticed Brock had a mark on his cheek. It was some red lipstick in the shape of a pair of lips.

Misty began to get anrgy with the older boy, "What did you do?"

It a daze he said, "I got a kiss from a girl. She thought Togepi was so cute and thought I was it's trainer. We sat all day at the park and she played with Togepi all day too. At the end of the day she gave me a kiss for having such a great time."

The girl took her Togepi from his hands and then yanked on his ear to bring him back to reality.

"You used Togepi to get a girl?!" she asked angrily.

Brock started to back up, scared for his life. Misty raised her hand with the pokèball in it above her head, ready to hit Brock for what he did.

But before she could bring it down, Ash grabbed her wrist and said, "Let it go for today. It's Valentine's Day."

She looked at the younger boy and blushed before saying in a huff, "Oh, fine."

The older boy thought that might be a good time to say something, "Are those new pokèballs you have?"

"Yeah, they were the prize for winning the tournament," explained Ash, "We had a great time battling and they weren't easy battles either."

'Well, let's see what kind of pokèmon are in them," said Brock.

Misty and Ash said together, "Go, Pokèball!" and threw the balls.

But nothing happened, no pokèmon came out. The only thing heard was a cracking sound when they hit the ground. Brock walked over, picked up one of the balls and examined it.

"They're fake," he told the others.

"Fake?!" replied the other two.

"Yeah, novelty pokèballs," he explained, "You can put something small inside of them and make it look like you're carrying around a real pokèball."

"But what's in them?" wondered Ash as he picked up the other ball.

He pushed the button and opened the ball. Inside was a folded up piece of paper. Brock took it and read it. A serious look came to his face.

"What is it?" asked Misty.

"The prize is a romantic dinner for two to a restaurant here in town," said the older boy.

Both Misty and Ash turned to look at each other, then quickly looked away and they both blushed crimson red. Brock raised an eyebrow at the whole thing.

"Did something happen to the two of you that I'm not aware of?" he asked.

Together they said loudly, "NO!"

* * *

The next morning Ash and his friends started off towards the next town and his next gym battle. With the young man a few steps ahead of his companions, he was eager to get back on the road again.

They had barely left the Pokèmon Center where they had stayed the night before when Brock asked them an obvious question, "How was the dinner?"

He had been unable to ask last night, by the time Ash and Misty came to the room they were staying in, the older trainer was already asleep in bed.

The girl was the first to answer him, "It was nice."

And it was a very nice dinner in a fairly nice restaurant, the only thing that it could have done without was the romantic atmosphere. The staff went out of their way, with violin music and candlelight, to make the two young trainers feel as uncomfortable as possible. They didn't talk much during dinner, both very embarrassed to be in the situation they were in, and tried to enjoy it as much as they could.

Looking around as they walked, the three of them saw the remnants of the town's founding celebration, the red, pink and white streamers still hung from the trees and hearts of all sizes were still in all the windows. Not many of the people were out and about, it was just shortly after breakfast and the populace was beginning to start the day.

They were making good time as Ash passed in front of a newspaper rack and the front page story caught the corner of his eye. He stopped to examine it. The young trainer looked at the newspaper in the box and saw a picture of kiss he and Misty shared in full blown color and above it was the headline "Young Couple Wins Local Tourney" and the sub-headline of "Seals Victory with a Kiss".

Blushing a little at the picture, the boy glanced back at his friends and saw they were fast approaching. The trainer did the first thing that came to him, "H-hey guys, let's have a race. The first person to reach the road out of town is the winner."

Not waiting for an answer, he added, "Come on, Pikachu." and ran off in a hurry, leaving his friends behind.

"Pika!" agreed his pokèmon as it followed him.

"Hey Ash!" called his confused friends with Brock adding, "What's your hurry?"

Misty happened to look over at what had been behind the boy's back and saw the front page of the paper.

Quickly and with red in her cheeks, the girl said, "W-wait for me!" and ran after him.

Brock raised one of his eyebrows, confused about what just happened before running after his friends, leaving the newspaper and their visit to the town behind them.

The End


End file.
